


You're A Genius, Steve Harrington

by sauvignonfierce



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Established Relationship, I can't get this goddamn ship out of my head, I'm gonna die with it, Light Angst, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-19
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2019-02-04 07:28:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12766074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sauvignonfierce/pseuds/sauvignonfierce
Summary: "Prom was coming up and Jonathan was freaking out. The school expected Nancy and Steve to go together. He’d heard whispers in the halls when the three of them passed clusters of cheerleaders. Words like ‘dance’ ‘king and queen’ and ‘couple’ flew past his ears and he wanted to run and duck into the bathroom, waiting until everybody was gone. But he didn’t. He simply gripped the strap of his backpack and kept his head down as they passed."





	You're A Genius, Steve Harrington

Prom was coming up and Jonathan was freaking out. The school expected Nancy and Steve to go together. He’d heard whispers in the halls when the three of them passed clusters of cheerleaders. Words like ‘dance’ ‘king and queen’ and ‘couple’ flew past his ears and he wanted to run and duck into the bathroom, waiting until everybody was gone. But he didn’t. He simply gripped the strap of his backpack and kept his head down as they passed.

He didn’t know if Nancy expected him to ask her to the dance, or if it was just expected she’d go with Steve. People didn’t know the nature of their relationship. They didn’t know they spent their free time tangled up in each other, sweaty and in love. They didn’t know how much he loved kissing Steve, how tender it was when Nancy would kiss Steve in front of him, and then place her soft lips on his while Steve’s hand carded through Jonathan’s hair. It was 1984, and people didn’t know because they wouldn’t understand.

Instead of bringing it up, they just kept quiet.

“Why don’t we just tell them?” Nancy asked one night, while Steve and Jonathan sat on her floor, flipping through a textbook. Jonathan was taking notes and Steve was mostly gazing at the pages without really taking anything in.

“Tell them what?” Steve asked, grateful to have an excuse to not stare at the book any longer.

“About us. It’s getting ridiculous. I mean, Mrs. Byers and the Chief found out, and they don’t care.” Jonathan blushed profusely at the memory. The three of them had been in the living room on the couch. Nancy was between the two boys as they leaned over her and kissing, their hands on her thighs when the door had flung open. They weren’t expecting them home before 10, and it was only 9:15. Joyce had dropped her purse to the floor, scrambling to pick it up and apologizing over and over. The Chief had averted his eyes with an amused look on his face.

After a few painfully awkward minutes of explaining that the three of them were dating each other, the two adults had seemed okay with it. Joyce had cupped Jonathan’s face and told him as long as he was happy, she was fine with it. She’d always liked Nancy, and she grew to like Steve a lot too. Especially after seeing how much Will and his friends liked Steve.

“Yeah, but they’re….adults. It’s different when it’s a bunch of teenagers. People aren’t going to just be okay with it,” Jonathan said, sitting up straighter and looking at his girlfriend on the bed.

“We don’t know that,” Steve said, perking up. “I mean, what if people don’t care. It’s possible.” Jonathan glared at him. It’s not that he didn’t want to be able to kiss Steve in the hallway while holding Nancy’s hand, but it wasn’t realistic. He’d been beaten up and pushed around enough in school to know how these things played out.  
“Maybe we should just keep studying,” Jonathan grumbled, pulling the book onto his lap. He didn’t see the look Nancy and Steve exchanged

* * * * * 

“Hey, man. Are you sure you’re okay?” Steve asked him the next day while he was transferring his books to his locker. Jonathan nodded, focused on the task. He felt Steve’s warmth next to him, emanating from his body and from his eyes. He looked up and met his boyfriend’s gaze.

“I’m fine,” he said. “I just. I don’t think it’s a good idea, that’s all.” His voice was quiet. Steve looked around and reached up, discreetly touching Jonathan’s face. It took him a while to get used to how physical Steve was. Not just sexually, but there were always casual touches and gentle kisses. It always made his heart flutter when he touched him or saw him touch Nancy.

“Think about it, okay? Nance and I just want to make sure all three of us are happy. We don’t have that much time left here, and who knows what’s gonna happen next. The world’s so shitty-“

“I get it.” Jonathan cut him off, pulling away from the warm space between their bodies. “I have to get to class. See you later.” He slammed his locker harder than intended and shuffled down the hallway, head down. Steve watched him go, aching to go after him. Instead, he sighed and leaned his forehead against Jonathan’s locker, kicking the door and going to his next class.

Nancy was sitting at the lab desk next to him, and their science teacher was dozing in his chair while the class watched a video that had something to do with birds.

“I talked to Jonathan,” he said quietly. Other students were whispering to each other as well, as they did when Mr. Sanderson fell asleep.

“About what?”

“About the three of us. He seems…really against the idea of other people knowing.” Nancy propped her head on her hand, leaning on her elbow and turning to look at one of the boys she loved.

“I know. I get it, I mean, from his point of view.”

“Me too, but it’s still a little weird, right? Like, he has us. We’re not going to let a bunch of closed minded assholes get to him or anything,” Steve whispered, getting a bit heated.

“We can’t force this on him. You know Jonathan, he’s not like us. He’s very…aware of everybody else,” she said, searching for the right words to describe the smart, quiet boy.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. You’re right. I don’t want to force him to do anything he’s uncomfortable with but we have 4 months of school left and I dunno, I guess I just want to be able to be with both of you for that. Really be with you. Not just skulk around after school hoping nobody from class will see us.” She reached under the table and put her small hand on his knee, squeezing lightly. Seeing Steve so passionate about the three of them made her heart flutter like she was about to have a heart attack. She loved them both so much, and even though their relationship hadn’t started out on a great note, what with the punching and the blood, they’d formed a deep bond.

“Let me talk to him.” Steve nodded, putting his hand on hers, still on his knee.

* * * * * 

“Jonathan!” Nancy jogged after the shaggy haired boy after school, catching up to him standing by his rust bucket of a car.

“Hey, Nance,” he said, shoulders more slumped than usual, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

“Can we talk?”

“Uh oh,” he said, the corners of his mouth turning up in the hint of a smile.

“Nothing bad, I promise,” Nancy said, returning the faint smile and opening the passenger door. He got in the drivers seat. They liked to drive together. That’s when she really got the most out of him, before they started dating. They’d just drive through the cornfields, stark and barren in the winter, full and golden in the summer. They’d talk about music, about Will and Mike, about Hopper and Joyce, and eventually about Steve. They still took these drives sometimes, without their third relationship partner. Steve didn’t mind. They all had their things they did without the other.

The trees were beginning to bloom in the mid spring weather, pink buds emerging from their green casings as the frozen ground thawed and they were able to soak up the warmth and water they needed to survive. Soon petals would drift to the ground with the oncoming summer, and then the leaves would fall and the three of them would be adults out in the world on their own. Nancy wasn’t ready to think about that just yet, so she shook the thoughts from her head.

“What’s wrong?” She asked him. He sighed, not taking his eyes off the road.

“Nothing’s wrong, Nance. I’m just happy with how things are now,” he explained.

“I am too. But that doesn’t mean they can’t get better. Think about it, the three of us at together at graduation, at prom-“ Jonathan scoffed and Nancy scowled. “What?”

“Prom,” he said dryly. “It’s a joke.” Nancy tipped her head towards him.

“I know it’s not your thing, Jonathan but it would be fun. Steve would get us some booze, we’d get all dressed up and dance all night.” He was shaking his head as she spoke, looking annoyed.

“But it’s not going to be like that. You should just go with Steve, that’s what everyone expects anyway,” he grumbled.

“It’s not what I want. And it’s not what Steve wants. And deep down, Jonathan, it’s not what you want either.” She wanted to imagine she saw him soften at that, but in reality, through the dimming lights of the oncoming evening, she didn’t. She saw him, frowning and staring ahead as they drove towards her house.

“I can’t even ask you to prom, Nancy. Maybe you should just be with Steve.” He pulled up in her driveway. She was so hurt, so distraught at how Jonathan saw her and Steve that she wrenched the door open and stormed into her house. Jonathan idled in her driveway for a minute, trying to figure out what to do next. He had no idea how to climb out of the hole he’d dug for himself. Part of him wanted to go to prom and be the kind of carefree teenager he saw every day in the halls, but another more urgent part of him knew that was a dream, something that would never happen.

* * * * * 

Jonathan spent the next few days avoiding Steve and Nancy. Steve tried to corner him in the halls, but he’d slip away in a flurry of excuses. Nancy gave him room. She was more patient with him than Steve was and she didn’t want to push him anymore than she had already. Jonathan usually came around after brooding for a couple of days. She’d flash him her big eyes and he’d roll his, accepting her back into his life. It had happened before, it would happen again. She hoped.

“I was thinking,” Steve said before school, chewing his thumbnail. “You told me that Jonathan said he couldn’t even ask you to prom.”

“Right…what about it?”

“That’s Jonathan. We had to make the first move, we had to get him into bed, he doesn’t take the initiative. Which is just who he is and what we love about him.” Nancy looked up, a grin spreading across her face.

“You’re a genius, Steve Harrington.”

The two cut first and second period, gathering the supplies needed to make this a very special day for Jonathan. They were buzzing through the rest of their classes, waiting for everything to fall into place. They didn’t want to embarrass Jonathan or make him come out to the school as part of their strange little relationship before he was ready, so Nancy had to pare down Steve’s more over the top original plan.

Jonathan looked for them after the school day ended, trying to muster up the courage to apologize and try to work things out, but they were nowhere to be found. A pang of sadness shot through him. He walked to his car, defeated. Through the window, he saw a folder sitting on the drivers seat. It was pink and he knew immediately it was one of Nancy’s. Confused, he unlocked the door and picked it up, opening it slowly. A glossy black and white photo stared back at him. He pulled it out and found several more in the folder.

The first one was Nancy, on the roof of the school. She was grinning at the camera, holding up a giant piece of pasteboard with the word “WILL” written in her slanted writing. He smiled at the girl on the page, who looked so free and happy with the white sun shining on her hair, radiating warmth through the gray hues. He tucked it into the empty pocket of the folder.

The next one was Steve, sunglasses reflecting the sun from the same roof. He was smiling and looked to be laughing at something. The sign in his hands said “YOU”, written a bit sloppier than the one Nancy had been holding.

The third photo was Nancy again, reclining on a worn out lawn chair, her legs crossed at the ankles. She was wearing Steve’s sunglasses and had one hand scrunching up her curly hair. She looked like a movie star, missing only the red lipstick and cigarette he was used to seeing in magazine photospreads. The sign perched on her hips pointed in the direction of the camera said “GO”.

Jonathan put the photo with the other two. He knew he was smiling, and he knew what was coming but he still felt giddy with the prospect of the surprise. He could hear people starting their cars and driving from school, and any other day he would have worried they were staring at him and wondering what he could be looking at, but now he didn’t care. He looked at the next photo in the series.

Steve, sitting on the edge of the roof. He could only imagine how Nancy had asked him numerous times not to sit there, but Steve had of course done it anyway. One leg was dangling over the roof, one on the ground as he straddled the low wall. The photo was slightly crooked, and he figured Nancy had only extended her arms out to get the picture, not wanting to get too close to the edge. He didn’t have his glasses on, and was squinting into the sun and the camera, holding a sign that said “TO”.

The fifth photo was just the sign, placed carefully on the concrete, propped up by two flower pots on either side. He wondered if the flower pots had always been up there. The word was “PROM” and his heart constricted. He was nervous. Of course he was. It was prom, and this was huge.

The next photo was Nancy again. She was sitting on the ground, her legs crossed, a sweet smile on her face. It was how he’d always remember her. She looked beautiful and her intelligence and charisma shone through the photo. The sign in her hands said “WITH”.

He placed the photo with the others and closed his eyes briefly before looking at the next photo. Steve and Nancy. His arm was draped in the air, as if around the shoulders of an invisible person between them. Her arm around this invisible persons waist. Jonathan’s waist. His waist. The sign they held above their heads with their free hands said “US”.

He looked up, face aching from the smile that had been there since he started looking at the photos. Steve and Nancy were leaning on Steve’s car, parked one empty space away from his. He hadn’t noticed them arrive, which he expected was part of the plan. They looked mischievous, little smirks dancing on their faces as he made eye contact with both of them.

“Well?” Steve asked, throwing his hands in the air.

“Yes!” Jonathan shouted, louder than necessary.

“Yes! He said yes!” Nancy said, giddiness unmistakable. She ran to him, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. Steve wasn’t far behind, pulling both of them into a hug. They didn’t care who was around. Nobody who saw this strange embrace between the three teens mattered to them in that moment. Jonathan finally felt it. He felt the freedom of being a teenager in love as he inhaled the smell of Nancy’s hair mingling with Steve’s cologne. It felt warm, and he never wanted it to fade.

The only thought that passed through his mind other than love at this moment made him laugh.

“What are you laughing at?” Steve asked, pulling back. Nancy looked up at him, arms still draped around his neck.

“I just never thought you guys were paying attention when I taught you how to develop photos.”


End file.
